UAE's recruitment of Filipino domestic workers: All you need to know

By the end of this month, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is expected to announce the details of the UAE’s recruitment of Filipino domestic workers, a top government official has said.

The UAE and the Philippines had earlier announced that starting April, the deployment of Filipino household workers to the country shall resume. The decision was taken after delegations from the two nations had finalised an agreement in a series of meetings held in Manila from March 1 to 2.

The deployment of domestic workers to the UAE had been suspended since 2014. Once this is lifted, the measure shall be covered by a ‘unified employment contract’ that provides stringent measures to protect Filipino domestic workers, the Philippine government had said in a previous Press statement.

“Now, we shall have to wait for details to be announced by the POEA,” said Presidential Adviser on OFWs Secretary Abdullah ‘Dabs’ Mama-o, who was recently on an official visit to the UAE, upon the invitation of the government.

Provisions of the new agreement shall be added to the UAE contract of Filipino household service workers, Mama-o said.

These provisions include ensuring workers would have at least eight hours of sleep every night, and at least one full day of paid leave every week. They should also be allowed to keep their passports; cook their own meals; use mobile phones; and they must have a bank account for their salary.

“(The household service workers’ contract) will be signed by the employee, the employer, the Philippine recruitment agency, and the UAE government-owned Tadbeer as the foreign recruitment agency,” the official added.

Accompanied by the Philippine Consul-General in Dubai Paul Raymund Cortez, Mama-o had a meeting with Saif Al Suwaidi, Undersecretary for Human Resources Affairs at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation and Head of the UAE delegation in the recently held bilateral committee meaning.

“Congratulations to the Philippine delegation to this third joint committee meeting for a job well done…so as to provide legal avenues for contracting Filipinos as household service workers in the UAE,” Mama-o said.